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"Boasting in the Lord"--1 Corinthians 1:30-31

“Boasting in the Lord”
1 Corinthians 1:30-31
2/28/16
I.                   Sermon Introduction
a.     Have you ever heard a kid brag about his dad?  His older brother?
b.    He is bragging/boasting, but it’s about something outside of himself
c.     Here in 1 Corinthians 1 we are going to see that we as Christians should boast, but not in ourselves
d.    Scripture introduction
                                                             i.      Here in 1 Corinthians 1 Paul is talking about the divisions in the church caused by intellectual favoritism
                                                           ii.      He insists that the truth of God has nothing to do with the wisdom of man, but with the power of God
                                                        iii.      He says that the Gospel makes the wisdom of man, both Jewish and Greek, look foolish, and that God delights in using the weak things of the world to glorify Himself
e.     Scripture reading: "And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, so that, as it is written, 'Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord."
f.       Prayer
II.                 The Source of Salvation (30A)
a.     “And because of Him”
                                                             i.      Literally “from Him”
                                                           ii.      Paul looks to God the Father as the ultimate cause of salvation
                                                        iii.      We can’t even take pride in the faith that accesses free salvation
                                                        iv.      DeYoung: "Believe in Christ with all your heart, but don't put your faith in your faith. Your experience of trusting Christ will ebb and flow. So be sure to rest in Jesus Christ and not your faith in Him."
                                                           v.      1 Corinthians 15:10a: “But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain.”
b.    “You are in Christ”
                                                             i.      Union with Christ is the ultimate path to salvation
                                                           ii.      It is the Gospel
                                                        iii.      How are we saved?  By being covenantally united to Christ
                                                        iv.      Galatians 3:26-27: “…for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.”
                                                           v.      Romans 5:1-2: “Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God.”
                                                        vi.      All the benefits of salvation flow from union with Christ
1.    Ephesians 1:3: “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places…”
2.    Legal benefits
a.     Forgiveness
b.    An inheritance
3.    Spiritual/mystical benefits
a.     Sanctification
b.    The Holy Spirit
c.     Communion with the Godhead
III.              The Benefits that Flow from Union with Christ (30B)
a.     They can all be summed up in wisdom
                                                             i.      “Sophia”—Wisdom, insight, skill, or intelligence
                                                           ii.      Paul is contrasting the divine path with the human path
                                                        iii.      Our eyes are opened to the wisdom of God’s truth through Christ
1.    Christ is the great revealer of God’s truth
2.    Through Christ we are given spiritual sight
                                                        iv.      Wisdom=the plan of salvation
b.    The three parts of that wisdom/plan of salvation
                                                             i.      Righteousness
1.    Quality of being just; acceptable to God
2.    Romans 3:21-22: “But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it—the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe.”
3.    2 Corinthians 5:21: “For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”
4.    Illustration: “Not guilty” verdict in a court of law
5.    Those who are in Christ are right with God—declared just
                                                           ii.      Sanctification
1.    Hebrews 13:12: “So Jesus also suffered outside the gate in order to sanctify the people through his own blood.”
2.    Consecrate; set apart; make holy
a.     Legal
                                                                                                                                     i.      Definitive
                                                                                                                                   ii.      1  Corinthians 6:11: “And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.”
                                                                                                                                iii.      This is probably what Paul has in
b.    Experiential
                                                                                                                                     i.      Progressive
                                                                                                                                   ii.      Ephesians 5:25-27: “Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish.”
3.    Illustration: Communion bread and wine are set apart for special use
4.    Those who are in Christ are special and holy in God’s eyes and are becoming holier in practice
                                                        iii.      Redemption
1.    A buying back, deliverance, the release secured through payment—ransom
2.    Mark 10:45: “For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
3.    Illustration: Old Testament redemption of enslaved brother
4.    Those who are in Christ are bought back from slavery to darkness
IV.             Application
a.     These truths should humble us
                                                             i.      Paul gives us the application in Verse 31
1.    “So that”—these truths should produce this result
2.    Paul quotes Jeremiah 9:23-24
                                                           ii.      The intended result of “Calvinism” is to humble us
                                                        iii.      If your salvation makes you proud of yourself, you should examine your heart to see if you are truly saved
                                                        iv.      John 1:12-13: “But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.”
                                                           v.      Remember the context
1.    Paul is contrasting carnal wisdom with divine wisdom
2.    “I was smart, I asked Jesus into my heart”
b.    These truths should make us grateful
                                                             i.      Our lives should be continuous acts of worship to God
                                                           ii.      Service, song, and study
                                                        iii.      Christ has purchased us; He is our lord
c.     These truths should teach us to rely on God
                                                             i.      He is perfectly wise
                                                           ii.      He is all-powerful
                                                        iii.      He is perfectly-loving
                                                        iv.      Proverbs 3:5-6: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.”  
V.                 Conclusion
a.     So, in what (whom) do you boast?
b.    Your own wisdom, righteousness, faith, etc.?
c.     Are you boasting in your Father?
d.    Let him who boasts, boast in the Lord



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